KEPALA BATAS, Aug 21 — The Federal government takes the issue of development in Penang seriously, especially the implementation of projects under the 12th Malaysia Plan (RMK-12) in which RM9.7 billion has been allocated for the state.
Housing and Local Government Minister Datuk Seri Reezal Merican Naina Merican said with the allocation, the government hoped to see development projects in Penang run smoothly.
“Today we paid a visit to inspect the progress of the SMK Bertam Putra construction project which cost RM27 million and was supposed to be completed in April 2020, but it has been delayed by almost two years.
“The contractor informed that the delay in the project was due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the movement control order, the increase in the price of construction materials and the difficulty in obtaining foreign workers,” he told reporters after the visit here.
Reezal Merican, who is also Kepala Batas MP, said that the school was currently 85.9 per cent complete, and he hoped that the recovery plan to be presented would help resolve the ‘sick project’ by the end of the year.
He added that when there was a delay in the construction of educational institutions such as schools, it would place undue pressure on the development of local human capital, especially in rapidly developing areas such as Bertam.
“We want to avoid the project being terminated because if it happens, the project will have to go through the tendering process again, which will take time and may include increased costs, while the contractor will be blacklisted,” he said.
